EPA Ignores Toxic Air Risk levels

EPA Ignores Toxic Air Risk levels

Aug. 2007  - A recent analysis by the U.S. 
Environmental Protection Agency, EPA, on the risks from air toxics emitted 
from petroleum refineries found that the risks to human health and the 
environment are low enough that no further controls are warranted, the 
agency said Thursday. 
The EPA analyzed the petroleum refinery emissions as part of a Clean Air 
Act requirement that the agency examine potential risks remaining after 
implementation of 1995 standards known as maximum achievable control 
technology, MACT, that require industrial facilities to reduce emissions 
of toxic air pollutants. 
Based on the results of the analysis, EPA is proposing two options for 
controlling air toxics emissions from refineries. 
The first option requires no additional emissions reductions because the 
risks are "acceptably low." 
As a second option, the EPA is proposing requiring additional emissions 
reductions for certain storage vessels and wastewater treatment units. 
Under this alternative, the agency projects that refineries could reduce 
air toxics emissions by about 1,000 to 4,600 tons per year from 153 
facilities. The agency estimates this alternative could cost up to $1.1 
million or save up to $4 million nationwide each year by reducing product 
loss. 
EPA is seeking public comment on both options for the next 60 days. 
The Natural Resources Defense Council, NRDC, made its comments 
immediately, saying that the federal agency is "flouting common sense as 
well as the law." 
"The EPA is officially proposing to ignore acknowledged risk levels that 
are 70 times higher than allowed by law," said John Walke, a senior 
attorney and the Clean Air Program director at NRDC. 
If it stands, the decision will impose a significant cancer risk on nearly 
half a million Americans, he said. 
Under the Clean Air Act requirement, the agency was supposed to determine 
whether the first round of MACT standards reduced lifetime cancer risks to 
the public from toxic refinery pollution to less than 1-in-1-million. 
If cancer risk exceeds 1-in-1 million, EPA must require better control 
measures to protect the public by reducing risks to below that figure. 
In Thursday's announcement, however, the EPA asserts that the appropriate 
threshold for action is not 1-in-1-million, but 100-in-1 million. 
Because the agency finds toxic emissions from oil refineries to pose 
cancer risks of 70-in-1 million, the EPA says its preferred approach is to 
do nothing about these cancer risks and to require no additional pollution 
controls at oil refineries. 
"Nearly one in three Americans lives within 30 miles of a refinery," Walke 
said. "This ruling subjects the public to increased cancer risks and other 
chronic health hazards. Oil companies have the technology and the 
resources to fix this problem, but EPA wants to let them off the hook." 

---


More Aging Earth Headlines >> 1 - 2 - 3 - 4 - 5 - 6 - 7 - 8 - 9 - 10 - 11 - 12 - 13 - 14 - 15 - 16 - 17 - 18 - 19 - 20 - 21 - 22 - 23 - 24 - 25 - 26 - 27 - Aging Earth Home

AGING EARTH HOME

---

© 2009; Aging Earth .com
Powered by WorldsLargestNetwork.com